ABSTRACT
In 1995, the Vermont Division of Casey Family Services began collaborating with the state Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services and the University of Vermont in an initiative to provide family group decision-making to families in two regions of Vermont. Making Action Plans or the McGill Action Planning System (MAPS) had been created at McGill University in Canada to aid in the development of education plans for children in need of services. In the preliminary planning phase, the coordinator also works with the family to help decide on the focus of the MAP. The MAPS process is a structured conversation consisting of a series of six steps, in which participants are asked to reflect on and answer questions about an individual or the entire family. The question categories are the family's or individual's history, dreams, fears, who they are, needs and plan.
